Still-Unreleased MARTHA REEVES & THE VANDELLAS Recording!

[Philles/Motown Gary]

When I took my tour of Motown’s Donovan Building back in October, 1971, I had the pleasure of meeting Billy Calvin and Brenda Evans of The Undisputed Truth and Marv Johnson, as well as Johnny Bristol [[who, at the time, was in the middle of mixing the vocal version of Jr. Walker’s "Way Back Home"). I then had cocktails with Mrs. [[Bertha) Berry Gordy, Sr., in her office. What a sweet lady she was! I couldn’t believe how kind and friendly these folks were to me. I seemed to fit in with my musical heroes like a glove!

Then the real fun began! When George Gordy entered his mother’s office, he spent time visiting with me as well. When he found out that I had been a Motown collector since 1964, he uttered the magic words: "Gary, do you think you could spot a hit if you heard one?" I said, "Sure, if it’s Motown." He said, "Come with me." George took me to his office where he had a big, reel-to-reel recorder set up. He proceeded to play for me two brand new tracks which he had just finished recording on Martha Reeves & The Vandellas. The first was "In And Out Of My Life" which I immediately fell in love with. Martha was singing in a lower register than usual, which sounded very appealing and sexy to me [[just as Diana sounded especially sexy singing "Where Did Our Love Go" in a lower register than usual). When I heard The Andantes’ fantastic back-up harmonies soaring throughout each chorus [[who, at the time, I thought were Lois Reeves and Sandy Tilley of The Vandellas), I could feel myself beaming! George noticed it, too, as he started beaming, too! He played it for me three times [[at my request), then told me that it would be Martha’s next single [[which it was, as well as being included on Martha’s upcoming "Black Magic" LP. Best of all, I got to hear "In And Out Of My Life" before Motown’s Quality Control Department heard it! That meant the world to me. Unfortunately, neither the single nor the album shot up the charts, but, musically, they remain high on my personal chart of Motown’s finest recordings.

This is where the mystery begins: George then proceeded to play another newly-recorded Martha Reeves & The Vandellas track for me. As soon as the instrumental intro began, I recognized it immediately and exclaimed, "Hey, that’s "Living In A World I Created For Myself"! Jimmy Ruffin just did that on his latest "Groove Governor" album! George said, "You really DO know your Motown"! The instrumental background was very similar to Jimmy’s. In fact, it may have been the exact same backing track used on Jimmy’s version. I heard it only once, and my head was swimming from the excitement of sitting there with George Gordy, who, along with everyone else at Motown that day, was treating me like a king in the middle of Motown royalty! In this new version of "Living In A World I Created For Myself", once again, George had Martha singing in a lower register which was super-appealing. Unfortunately, the recording has yet to surface. I told Harry Weinger about it several years ago. Harry had his staff search for it, but it was nowhere to be found. A year or so later, I asked Harry about it again, but he said there was still no sign of it. He allowed that, if they had found it, they would have included it on Martha Reeves & The Vandellas’ "Lost & Found" 2-CD set of previously-unreleased Motown recordings.

So, for the fans of Martha Reeves’ Motown recordings [[and who isn’t?), somewhere out there exists the master tape for Martha Reeves & The Vandellas "Living In A World I Created For Myself." I know it existed because, thanks to George Gordy, I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear it with my own two ears.

[[NOTE: I’ve always wondered if George Gordy would remember me, and whether or not he had any idea of what might have happened to that master tape. Unfortunately, I waited too long to write to him. I finally made the effort to write to him last year, only to discover that he had already passed away. [[God rest his soul.) Without doubt, I deserve a swift kick in the butt for procrastinating.)

[Laserdk]

When I took my tour of Motown’s Donovan Building back in October, 1971, I had the pleasure of meeting Billy Calvin and Brenda Evans of The Undisputed Truth and Marv Johnson, as well as Johnny Bristol [[who, at the time, was in the middle of mixing the vocal version of Jr. Walker’s "Way Back Home"). I then had cocktails with Mrs. [[Bertha) Berry Gordy, Sr., in her office. What a sweet lady she was! I couldn’t believe how kind and friendly these folks were to me. I seemed to fit in with my musical heroes like a glove!

Then the real fun began! When George Gordy entered his mother’s office, he spent time visiting with me as well. When he found out that I had been a Motown collector since 1964, he uttered the magic words: "Gary, do you think you could spot a hit if you heard one?" I said, "Sure, if it’s Motown." He said, "Come with me." George took me to his office where he had a big, reel-to-reel recorder set up. He proceeded to play for me two brand new tracks which he had just finished recording on Martha Reeves & The Vandellas. The first was "In And Out Of My Life" which I immediately fell in love with. Martha was singing in a lower register than usual, which sounded very appealing and sexy to me [[just as Diana sounded especially sexy singing "Where Did Our Love Go" in a lower register than usual). When I heard The Andantes’ fantastic back-up harmonies soaring throughout each chorus [[who, at the time, I thought were Lois Reeves and Sandy Tilley of The Vandellas), I could feel myself beaming! George noticed it, too, as he started beaming, too! He played it for me three times [[at my request), then told me that it would be Martha’s next single [[which it was, as well as being included on Martha’s upcoming "Black Magic" LP. Best of all, I got to hear "In And Out Of My Life" before Motown’s Quality Control Department heard it! That meant the world to me. Unfortunately, neither the single nor the album shot up the charts, but, musically, they remain high on my personal chart of Motown’s finest recordings.

This is where the mystery begins: George then proceeded to play another newly-recorded Martha Reeves & The Vandellas track for me. As soon as the instrumental intro began, I recognized it immediately and exclaimed, "Hey, that’s "Living In A World I Created For Myself"! Jimmy Ruffin just did that on his latest "Groove Governor" album! George said, "You really DO know your Motown"! The instrumental background was very similar to Jimmy’s. In fact, it may have been the exact same backing track used on Jimmy’s version. I heard it only once, and my head was swimming from the excitement of sitting there with George Gordy, who, along with everyone else at Motown that day, was treating me like a king in the middle of Motown royalty! In this new version of "Living In A World I Created For Myself", once again, George had Martha singing in a lower register which was super-appealing. Unfortunately, the recording has yet to surface. I told Harry Weinger about it several years ago. Harry had his staff search for it, but it was nowhere to be found. A year or so later, I asked Harry about it again, but he said there was still no sign of it. He allowed that, if they had found it, they would have included it on Martha Reeves & The Vandellas’ "Lost & Found" 2-CD set of previously-unreleased Motown recordings.

So, for the fans of Martha Reeves’ Motown recordings [[and who isn’t?), somewhere out there exists the master tape for Martha Reeves & The Vandellas "Living In A World I Created For Myself." I know it existed because, thanks to George Gordy, I had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear it with my own two ears.

[[NOTE: I’ve always wondered if George Gordy would remember me, and whether or not he had any idea of what might have happened to that master tape. Unfortunately, I waited too long to write to him. I finally made the effort to write to him last year, only to discover that he had already passed away. [[God rest his soul.) Without doubt, I deserve a swift kick in the butt for procrastinating.)


Just out of curosity was "Living In A World I Created For Myself" on the same reel-to-reel tape as "In And Out Of My Life"? I only ask because I've always had the track listed on my own list of unreleased Martha & the Vandellas' tracks. I just assumed it was still awaiting to be discovered.

Ivor

[Philles/Motown Gary]

Just out of curosity was "Living In A World I Created For Myself" on the same reel-to-reel tape as "In And Out Of My Life"? I only ask because I've always had the track listed on my own list of unreleased Martha & the Vandellas' tracks. I just assumed it was still awaiting to be discovered.

Ivor
It was on the same reel of tape. George played "In And Out Of My Life", then backed up the tape to replay it for me twice more. Then, he proceeded to the next track on the reel, which was "Living In A World I Created For Myself". I'm curious, Ivor. You said that "Living" has always been on your list of previously-unreleasd Martha & The Vandellas tracks. How did you know that the recording even existed? - Gary

[Laserdk]

It was on the same reel of tape. George played "In And Out Of My Life", then backed up the tape to replay it for me twice more. Then, he proceeded to the next track on the reel, which was "Living In A World I Created For Myself". I'm curious, Ivor. You said that "Living" has always been on your list of previously-unreleasd Martha & The Vandellas tracks. How did you know that the recording even existed? - Gary

Gary,

As usual, the good folks at UK Motown told me about it back in the 70s as they, obviously, knew of its existence back at that time. Saying that, this is not the first time they mentioned a track in various lists and reply letters they sent to me which, now turns out, doesn't exist or can't be found.

I was just thinking if you said it was on the same reel-to-reel tape as "In & Out Of My Life" I would have expected, logically, for it to be on the same master tape reel but, perhaps, that's not how it was done in practice. Just as an aside, around the same time UK Motown also told me that Jimmy had cut a version of "In & Out Of My Life" but, I'm sure our dear pal Paul confirmed that wasn't found and/or doesn't exist when he was doing the research for Jimmy's splendid 2 disc "Ultimate Motown Collection". However, to finagle Paul's old mantra when it comes to Motown "never say never".

Ivor

Ivor

[honest man]

Gary,

As usual, the good folks at UK Motown told me about it back in the 70s as they, obviously, knew of its existence back at that time. Saying that, this is not the first time they mentioned a track in various lists and reply letters they sent to me which, now turns out, doesn't exist or can't be found.

I was just thinking if you said it was on the same reel-to-reel tape as "In & Out Of My Life" I would have expected, logically, for it to be on the same master tape reel but, perhaps, that's not how it was done in practice. Just as an aside, around the same time UK Motown also told me that Jimmy had cut a version of "In & Out Of My Life" but, I'm sure our dear pal Paul confirmed that wasn't found and/or doesn't exist when he was doing the research for Jimmy's splendid 2 disc "Ultimate Motown Collection". However, to finagle Paul's old mantra when it comes to Motown "never say never".

Ivor

Ivor Hello lads sorry to butt in here ,same thing happened to me i heard Brenda Holloway You're gonna love my baby played ,yes real 60s Motown not a rerecorded effort about 15 years ago it has never turned up on any compilations and no one seems to know about it,but believe me it is out there,also had Stevie Wonder don't want nobody make me cry on tape it has not turned up.maybe one day .would love to hear more Jimmy's unreleased material.cheers.

[Philles/Motown Gary]

Gary,

As usual, the good folks at UK Motown told me about it back in the 70s as they, obviously, knew of its existence back at that time. Saying that, this is not the first time they mentioned a track in various lists and reply letters they sent to me which, now turns out, doesn't exist or can't be found.

I was just thinking if you said it was on the same reel-to-reel tape as "In & Out Of My Life" I would have expected, logically, for it to be on the same master tape reel but, perhaps, that's not how it was done in practice. Just as an aside, around the same time UK Motown also told me that Jimmy had cut a version of "In & Out Of My Life" but, I'm sure our dear pal Paul confirmed that wasn't found and/or doesn't exist when he was doing the research for Jimmy's splendid 2 disc "Ultimate Motown Collection". However, to finagle Paul's old mantra when it comes to Motown "never say never".

Ivor

Ivor
Ivor, I may be wrong, but I'm assuming that the master tape for Martha's "Living In A World I Created For Myself" was safely locked away in Motown's Tape Library, while the reel-to-reel version that George Gordy played for me in his office was a copy of the master. Just a guess.

I wonder if Martha remembers recording it? I hope so, because she did a great job on the vocals, as did The Andantes.

Boy, I sure would love to hear Jimmy Ruffin's version of "In And Out Of My Life". It's a great song, and you just know that he would have done it justice!

Gary

[Philles/Motown Gary]

Gary,

However, to finagle Paul's old mantra when it comes to Motown "never say never".

Ivor


Also, Ivor, you and Paul are so right. As history has proven, when it comes to Motown, never EVER say never!
- Gary

[Philles/Motown Gary]

Hello lads sorry to butt in here ,same thing happened to me i heard Brenda Holloway You're gonna love my baby played ,yes real 60s Motown not a rerecorded effort about 15 years ago it has never turned up on any compilations and no one seems to know about it,but believe me it is out there,also had Stevie Wonder don't want nobody make me cry on tape it has not turned up.maybe one day .would love to hear more Jimmy's unreleased material.cheers.

No problem, honest man. Any time that human beings are in control of filing [[or anything else, for that matter), there are bound to be mistakes made whereby things get inadvertently misfiled. I'm sure that the Motown Library is no exception. Sooner or later, these tracks known to once exist are bound to show up.

Was Brenda Holloway's "You're Gonna Love My Baby" the same song as Barbara McNair's?

Cheers Right Back At Ya!
Gary

[Laserdk]

No problem, honest man. Any time that human beings are in control of filing [[or anything else, for that matter), there are bound to be mistakes made whereby things get inadvertently misfiled. I'm sure that the Motown Library is no exception. Sooner or later, these tracks known to once exist are bound to show up.

Was Brenda Holloway's "You're Gonna Love My Baby" the same song as Barbara McNair's?

Cheers Right Back At Ya!
Gary

Honest Man,

Has someone, in the know, confirmed to you that Brenda's version of "You're Gonna Love My Baby" doesn't actually exist as my understanding is there's still oodles of unreleased Brenda sat in that old Motown vault.

Ivor

[theboyfromxtown]

Honest Man,

Has someone, in the know, confirmed to you that Brenda's version of "You're Gonna Love My Baby" doesn't actually exist as my understanding is there's still oodles of unreleased Brenda sat in that old Motown vault.

Ivor

Only Barbara was assigned the song.

[honest man]

Only Barbara was assigned the song. John believe me mate it was the real deal word for word arrangement exactly as Barbara Mcnair, version Gary it was Chris King who played it,need i say more i know my Motown.cheers.

[theboyfromxtown]

John believe me mate it was the real deal word for word arrangement exactly as Barbara Mcnair, version Gary it was Chris King who played it,need i say more i know my Motown.cheers.

Andy..I believe you because I have heard it. All I am saying is that is not noted in the paperwork. And the fact that Chris King played it, suggests to me that it was recorded in recent times. We should ask Brenda....when we next see her

[honest man]

Andy..I believe you because I have heard it. All I am saying is that is not noted in the paperwork. And the fact that Chris King played it, suggests to me that it was recorded in recent times. We should ask Brenda....when we next see herNo problem mate,what did you think it sounded like,more so it was an original recording ,i believe he had access to Motown TAPES ETC ,cheers.

[theboyfromxtown]

No problem mate,what did you think it sounded like,more so it was an original recording ,i believe he had access to Motown TAPES ETC ,cheers.

He did..and still does ..but shouldn't!

[honest man]

Andy..I believe you because I have heard it. All I am saying is that is not noted in the paperwork. And the fact that Chris King played it, suggests to me that it was recorded in recent times. We should ask Brenda....when we next see her The fact that he played it makes me know it was the real Motown,one reason i used to go to his Soul Doos was his vast collection of Rare Motown ,he is one of the best DJS in my opinion.cheers.

[144man]

The fact that he played it makes me know it was the real Motown,one reason i used to go to his Soul Doos was his vast collection of Rare Motown ,he is one of the best DJS in my opinion.cheers.

I do believe that an acetate of BH's "YGLMB" was listed in an earlier edition of DFTMC. Maybe Keith Hughes will be able to enlighten us.